Another week, another Ferrari, another world record for online auctions
As the global classic car auction circus made the rapid transition online in the wake of 2020’s Covid-19 crisis, we’ve observed far less spending at the top end of the market. One brand remains hotly-contested however, and has repeatedly reset the online auction record multiple times this year – Ferrari.
Just a week after we reported on the record-breaking online auction sale of a unique Bianco 1966 Ferrari 275GTB, this 2001 Ferrari 550 GT1 Prodrive reset the goal posts, with a AU$5.9 million (US$4.29 million) sale at RM Sotheby’s Shift/Monterey online auction on August 15.
RM Sotheby’s reclaims the record it last held in May, when it sold a Ferrari Enzo for US$2.64 million (AU$3.65 million) before Goodings & Company took the title last week.
The 550 GT1 was originally estimated to fetch between US$3.85 million and $4.85 million.
Both Bonhams and RM Sotheby’s held a Monterey-themed online sale last week, in place of the the cancelled traditional Monterey Car Week auctions.
While the 550 GT1 was the weekend’s highest achiever, it was a pre-war 1934 Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 Cabriolet that entered with the highest hopes. A US$6.5 to $7.5 million pre-auction estimate fell flat, and the coachbuilt art deco roadster failed to find a new home.
It’s unusual that such a modern racecar exceeds the values of other classical blue-chip road cars, however this is the last V12 Ferrari to achieve an outright race win during a 24-hour endurance, and the only one to do so this side of the millennium, winning the 2004 Spa 24 Hours as well as the FIA GT Championship.
Built for Prodrive, the front-engined endurance racer entered 49 races, in which it took pole 15 times, and won fourteen outright as well as 29 podium finishes.
The car comes with factory Ferrari Classiche Certification as well as all of its race logs and mileage charts.
It is now the sixth most expensive car sold at public auction in 2020 so far.
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